Is Britain's PM Rishi Sunak being snubbed by other G7 leaders?

Rishi Sunak, the UK Prime Minister, has found himself denying allegations of being snubbed by other leaders at the recent G7 summit in Italy. This event, potentially one of his last high-profile international trips, has come at a crucial time as he faces a general election on 4 July, where polls suggest he is likely to lose by a significant margin to Keir Starmer’s Labour Party. The latest polling data indicates that Labour is maintaining a lead of over 20 points against the Conservatives, creating a tense atmosphere for Sunak and his team.

Despite these challenges, Sunak emphasised that he had engaged in meaningful discussions with his counterparts, albeit informally. “You can do lots of meetings with people in the margins of things and that’s exactly what I have been doing,” Sunak told reporters. He mentioned having conversations with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on the sidelines, reinforcing the value of the summit’s intimate setting.

Sunak stated, “That’s the beauty of summits like this, actually: the intimacy of them.” Sunak’s ‘interaction’ with Meloni & other leaders Sunak’s first day at the summit saw a notable interaction with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a key ally on issues such as illegal migration. A video capturing their encounter showed Meloni appearing to ask Sunak sympathetically, “Are you OK?” #WATCH | Borgo Egnazia: Italian PM Giorgia Meloni receives United Kingdom PM Rishi Sunak, as.